Thousands of Indian Sikh farmers, protesting a government move to transition the purchase of agricultural produce from the public to the private sector, stormed the capital New Delhi on Tuesday during the Republic Day parade which was witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
After barging through barricades on the city’s main arteries, convoys of farmers on tractors clashed with New Delhi Police and waved farm union flags from the ramparts of the historic Red Fort, a symbol of government power for centuries.
A bunch of protestors hoisted what appeared to be the Khalistan separatist movement flag atop the Red Fort. However, upon investigation, it was found to be the ‘Nishan Sahib’, which bears a close visual similarity to the Khalistan flag but has a very different symbolic meaning.
Indian actor and activist, Deep Sidhu, who has been protesting for farmers’ rights, posted a video on Facebook, clarifying that only the Nishan Sahib was hoisted on the fort.
“We have only hoisted the Nishan Sahib flag on the Red Fort while exercising our democratic right to protest.”
Indian security forces fired tear gas and staged baton charges, but the protesters laid into police with their own weapons and hijacked buses that had been used to block their convoys.
The two-month-old protests against agricultural laws that deregulate produce markets have turned into the biggest challenge for Modi’s right-wing Hindu nationalist government since it came to power six years ago.
The government had opposed the rally saying it would be a “national embarrassment” at a time when it should be celebrating Republic Day.
As per media reports, some protesters reached a major intersection just three kilometers (1.8 miles) from the parade.
Modi was driven back to his residence barely 30 minutes before the farmers took over the city center.
Tens of thousands of farmers have camped on the outskirts of the capital since November, protesting against the new laws which the government says will boost rural incomes.
Farmers union leaders say they will allow private Indian conglomerates to take over the agriculture industry — the bedrock of the economy — and end guaranteed prices for most of their produce.
